Pistol
Requirements Brisé. Short description The Pistol is a very fast brisé, that aims to hit before the opponent has enough time to block or dodge. Principle The Brisé may be the fastest attack there is to Canne de combat. Performed cleanly, the preparation is less visible, as well as the development of the attack. It's the tightest move there is. Therefore, it's easy to use it to break the rythm and cause sudden acceleration, that should surprise the opponent and prevent him from blocking properly. Strengths Incredibly fast. Great rythm breaker. Good trigger for a various follow-up scoring, as your body has less momentum than with other attacks. Weaknesses A clean Brisé is hard to perform. A faster version of it is even harder. A faster version that's seen as valid by the judge is the hardest. As the Brisé only has one target, there is no uncertainty. If your intention is detected, it's easy to block or to counter. How to use it? Get your opponent used to some normal Brisés, or make him fall into a slow pace. Then, use the Pistol once in a while to surprise him and score before he can block. This attack is best used when you're taller than your opponent, and harder to use if you're smaller. Grinding this skill First of all, you need to know how to do a proper B. The armé needs to be as high as you can above the belt, as far back as you can, and with you stick perfectly parallel to the ground, and pointing exactly at your opponent. The motion of you hand must be as straight as possible, like a punch. By combining all thes elements, you're ensuring that you're only gonna cover the minimum distance between your stick and your target, which adds to the general speed of the attack. One of the difficulties one encounters when doing a B, is the grip. It's a fact that it's easier to perform this attack if you release your stick a bit, and open your hand to let it spin freely. However, it means a smaller contact with your hand/fingers, and an increase difficulty when trying to hold it at high speeds. Therefore, one of the first things you can do is to improve your grip, by performing your B as slow as possible. Ultimately, you should be able to completely freeze your attack at any point during the rotation of the stick, and then start the movement again. What you can do is time yourself performing one B. The longer the rotation takes, the better you get at it. Once you have a satisfying grip over your stick, what you need is speed and explosivity. It usually comes from flexible arm muscles, and strong core muscles. Then, don't forget to start working slowly, and to improve the speed little by little. When you reach a speed where your attack is not clean anymore, slow down, and take your time working your way up.